


Wakanda Ganes

by teamcap4bucky



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-20
Updated: 2018-11-20
Packaged: 2019-08-26 16:52:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16685455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teamcap4bucky/pseuds/teamcap4bucky
Summary: Summary: Bucky is at the point in his life where he is able to let loose and start having fun again. Thankfully, he has a few people in his life to remind him of how’s it done.





	Wakanda Ganes

Eze, udlale, udlale ( Come, play, play)  
Zintathu, zimbini, enye...Hamba (three, two, one, go)

Giggles. Always giggles. Sometimes, it was the splashing of water, or birds chirping from a nearby nest. Lately though, it was sound of little feet, and the whispers of small children. At first, he would wake in a panic, jolting upright, grabbing whatever he could to defend himself. They would run, scared, screaming as they hid… yet always returning the next day. It wasn’t until the day he grabbed a small fruit to defend himself, that he realized, he no longer had to fear his visitors, as they all fell to the ground, in fits of laughter at the stranger. These days he looks forward to the innocence, the lack of worry, the joy they bring him. 

“Do you want to play a game?” He calls out to the brightly painted animated faces. 

“Yes!”  
“Please!” The sound of cheering mixed with unfamiliar words carry across the small grassland.

“Okay, let’s see….” He watches as their gentle faces wait, knowing that they were always ready for whatever silly challenge he presented.

“Should we race today?”

They gleefully jump, running around him in circles, before pulling him to the small stacks of hay. 

“Okay, we start here, first one to the lake wins?”

Smiling down at them, he lines up in between two boys.

“Zintathu, zimbini, enye...Hamba!”

Ten minutes of running, ten minutes of giggles, before they all fall to the ground, gasping for air. 

It had been so long. Too long. You had missed his smile, his laughter, the carefree version of himself that he used to be, the man that Steve had told countless tales about. 

“Do you think I can play too?” You call to them from across the grassy meadow.

The look he gives you is one of wonder, love, and embarrassment. 

“What do you think? Should we let her play?” He leans on to his side, watching the children run towards you. 

He finally stands, making his way to you, a tinge of pink in his cheeks from the heat.

“How long have you been watching?” He looks down at his feet, kicking around the dirt and weeds, nervously waiting for your answer.

“Um, about four races in? Just in time for me to see you go down in race eight.” Mimicking his movements, you watch the ground with him, as if had the most important story to tell the both of you. 

“Eze, udlale, udlale!” Grabbing both of your hands, a young girl pulls you down to the lake.

“How about we play a new game?” Bucky gives all of you a sly grin. How about...Hide and Seek?”

You both laugh a bit when the children scatter before you even tell them to hide.

“They get really excited sometimes, this is one of their favorites games. They’re pretty easy to find though. I can usually hear them laughing when I get close.” The slight smile and nod he gives you warms your heart. “Come on, let’s go find them.”

As you walk along the lakefront, you steal small subtle glances of each other. He had changed so much in the last few months. He was still the same man you had fallen in love with not so long ago, but it was the little things you noticed that made you believe that he was truly healing. His stance was stronger, more confident. His eyes were a touch brighter, whereas they always held a tinge of worry before. 

“You look good, Buck.” Huffing out a small laugh, he shrugs as if it’s no big deal, as if the last 70 years was nothing to be concerned about.

“I feel good. Well, better at least.” Walking up to a small stack of wood, he slows his movements, and places a finger to his lips. “Gotcha!” He grabs ahold of the little boy, swinging him around while hugging him. They both chuckle as the boy runs from him and sits on the ground, waiting for his friends to be found.

“Wakanda...it’s been good for you. You look...rested, almost...happy?” He glances your way, eyes meeting yours for just enough time, just a fraction of a second, because that is all you need for the both of you to realize just how much you missed each other.

“Happy? I don’t know about all of that.” His arm suddenly crosses across your waist, almost as if he was protecting you from oncoming danger. His movements come to a stand still, and he stares at you for a moment. His eyes slowly drift upward, and his head follows shortly after.

“That was tricky!” The little girl launches her way out of the tree, giggling the whole way down until his strong arm catches her. You watch as he places her tenderly in the grass, and she runs off to join her friend.

“That smile says otherwise.” Teasingly, squinting at him, you wait for him to comeback with a another fib, but instead he looks almost sad. “What is it?”

“I like it here.” 

“I know.” The scenery that surrounded you both was one of beauty, history, and life. The calmness of it, much different than the hustle of the city, which is where you often met for your meetings and visits with T’Challa and Shuri. It was tranquil, and you understood every time you visited, why he chose to stay. He needed to be here, to heal, to live without fear, if only for a moment.

“I’m not coming back.” He mumbles, then looks around, pretending to look for the next player, but you knew he was just trying to not crush your heart. “At least, not yet, anyway.”

“I wasn’t going to ask you to. That’s not why I’m here. You know that...right?”

“Yeah. I’m... I’m not ready for...everything that you guys....”

“Bucky.” Standing in front of him, tenderly holding his hand, you wait until he finally meets your eyes. “I’m here because I missed you. Nothing more, nothing less. I just miss you.” 

His chest puffs out as he inhales deeply, your eyes saying everything that he needed to hear. There was never any pressure from you or Steve. Neither of you ever made him feel like he had to be anything more than just Bucky. 

“I miss you too. I wish you would visit more often.” He begins to walk towards his temporary home, hearing the soft whispers of a child.

“I would if I could, you know that. Steve keeps me pretty busy all the time.” Swinging his hand a little, you point over to the small stack of hay near the wall. 

“Hmmm, might have to speak to him about that.” He grins, but behind it is a bit of annoyance. 

“Yes…” You jump quickly and grab a small girl from behind, spinning her around in circles, smiling from ear to ear as she latches on to you, giggling as you tickle her belly. You point to her friends, and tell her to go. “Please do that, I could use the break actually. One more I think...yeah?”

“Yeah. One more. This way.” Still holding hands, you make your way towards the water. “How long do we have?”

“Till tomorrow afternoon.” Bucky rolls his eyes, and opens his mouth to complain, but you stop him before he has the chance. “Unless… you can convince him otherwise, which if anyone can do it, it would be you.”

“I’ll call him tonight, after I see Shuri for my session.” Letting go of your hand, he squats down near the edge of the lake, hiding himself behind tall blades of grass. You laugh when you hear the yell of a little boy, who jumps out of the thickett, and runs as fast as he can after being playfully splashed with water.

“Oh, you don’t have to call him...he’s…” Just as about to finish your thought, you turn to look at what has Bucky so suddenly distracted.

“Here.” Bucky stares at you with curiosity.

“Here. Come on, you don’t really think that he would pass up a chance to see his best friend, do you?”

Steve begins to cross the large opening, being escorted by Shuri, Okoye, and T’Challa himself.

“Well well, look what the cat dragged in.” Bucky grins, happy to see his best friend. Shuri chuckles at his reference to her brother as Steve reaches out to give Bucky a warm embrace. 

“I see we are feeling good today, Bucky?” Shuri places a gentle hand on his arm.

Bucky takes a moment to admire his surroundings, smiling when his eyes land upon you, and even chuckling as the small group of children run up to him and surround the five of you.

“It’s been a good day.” He becomes a bit nervous when he realizes all eyes are on him, more so when he realizes that they probably have never seen him showing affection to anyone before, yet here he was, still holding on your hand like you were the only thing that was holding him steady. You squeeze his hand in response, reassuring him that it was okay, that he was among good friends, old and new. 

“We’re just taking a second to enjoy the moment. Catching up and all.” Steve notices you lean in closer to Bucky, and he smirks at you, making your face heat up a tad.

“I see, and I also see you have been busy with these little ones. Did you wake him up again today?” Shuri pulls a small child in, hugging her, laughing as she speaks. “He needs his rest, otherwise he will never be able to win in your games.” Everyone begins to laugh, the children all speaking over each other telling the stories of their morning activities.

“I don’t mind. I like the company...and I don’t lose all the time, right?” The children begin to surround you both, reminding him of all the numerous times that he has lost, making the rest of you chuckle. 

“Maybe you guys need some new competition. How about we give the old man a break, and you can race me and...” You look around and your eyes land on your target. “Steve. He’s an old man too, but he is pretty fast.”

“Hey!” Both of the senior citizens yell out. T’Challa places a reassuring hand on Steve, pressing him forward, encouraging him to play.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve played any games. You may have to show me what to do.”

Small hands grab onto him pulling him towards the stacks. 

“We run to the river, the first one to arrive wins.” All of them yelling over each other in excitement.

“I’ll be right back, I’m going to go embarrass your friend.” Leaving Bucky with the siblings, they both snicker as Bucky calls out to you.

“Make me proud!” 

“Always!” Taking your place opposite Steve, you wink at the little girl next to you, steadying yourself in the ground. “Everybody ready? Bucky, can you count us off?”

Bucky starts the count, and you can Steve ground his feet into the surface of the grass.

“Three, Two, One…

The children start to giggle, and Bucky joins them, suddenly making you curious as to what they were up to. Steve being so focused, hadn’t taken notice of their silly behavior. Bucky winks as you look back at him with a curious look, only increasing your suspicion. 

“Be nice to the old man…” Steve spins to respond as Bucky yells. “Go!” Steve caught of guard, starts late as you and the children begin to run towards the lake. 

The five of you bolt to the water, both of you gaining than slowing every few feet to keep the competition fair. You ease a bit when you notice the little ones start to slow and hold back, becoming confused as the lake was still a good fifteen feet away or so. It’s then that you remember Bucky telling you the story of how he had fallen in the lake a week or so back. Something about the edge being softer or something as you neared the…

Within a split second, they completely drop out of your sight, stopping so suddenly, as if Wanda herself had frozen them in time. Realizing what was happening you slam your feet into place, lowering yourself, almost dragging your hand along the ground for added friction.

You all look at each other, eyes wide as they realize that you must have sensed the change in the ground too. 

You all look towards Steve, still in the race of his life. Covering your mouth, gasping as he looks at the ground a second to late, already dipping into the moist barrier. He tries his best to stop but his shoes get caught in the muck, and he slowly starts to topple forward. 

“Steve!” Instead of jumping up to help him, you turn covering what children you could, as a giant Steve sized splash of water heads in your direction.

Steve emerges from the water, sloshing his way to the grass, where he plops down, sighing, facing his defeat. Pulling his knees to his chest, he drapes his arms over them, blowing at the water on his nose. 

“Did you know?” He squints one eye, water dripping from his hair down into his long lashes. 

“No, I swear! I saw them drop back and figured something was up.” The children look guilty as sin when you finally glance their way. Your smile makes them burst into fits of giggles. 

“I knew!” Bucky bellows from afar, which only make the children double over, rolling around in the meadow.

“This isn’t the first time you've done this, is it?” Shaking your head, you reach out your hand for Steve. Once out, he shakes his hair and body, dousing the bunch of tricksters with water. 

“Let’s see how fast you can away from me now that I’m out!” Steve makes his way towards them, and it’s nothing but screams as they run off towards Bucky and Shuri. 

“White wolf! White wolf!!” They huddle and duck behind Bucky, begging to be protected from the scary lake monster. His arm stretching out to hide who he could, he stands in front of them like he was protecting his own. 

“Sorry, Steve.” You give Bucky a sly grin, and he smirks back. 

“Are you though?” Steve asks as he runs his hands through his wet hair. 

“No, not even a little. It was hilarious.” T’Challa offers Steve a room to get cleaned up in, but he respectively declines, mumbling something in regards to making a comeback, or claiming the next victory as his, and decides to stay, playing some more with you and the children. 

They beg for Bucky to play once, and he accepts. “Come on, let’s go show them how it’s done.”

At hearing this, Okoye smirks, glancing towards T’Challa, as if asking permission to speak. 

“You want to race too, don’t you Okoye?” She delivers that beautiful, mischievous smirk of hers, and he nods for her to join them.

T’Challa turns to Shuri his own face filled with a playfulness that is not often seen by his sister anymore. “Come, Shuri, let us show them all how it is really done.”


End file.
